Kenneth del Vecchio is an American lawyer, politician, and filmmaker. He has written, produced, directed and acted in over 30 films. He is founder and chairman of the Hoboken International Film Festival. He also is the author of several legal books, including criminal codebooks published by Prentice Hall and ALM. He is a novelist, who penned his first published novel as a 24-year-old law student. He is the owner of the Criminal Law Learning Center and a former part-time New Jersey municipal judge.
Prior to working in film, del Vecchio earned a Juris Doctor degree through Temple University law school and was admitted to the bar in 1994. He began writing while in college, during which time he published his first novel. In 2001 del Vecchio wrote, produced, and performed in The Rules (for Men), which he based on a novel he wrote. His next film, Pride and Loyalty, marked his directorial debut. He would go on to star, produce, and write in several more films; as of 2024 he has only directed an additional three films, Tinsel Town, The Drum Beats Twice, and 4 Presidents. In 2005 del Vecchio launched the Hoboken International Film Festival (HIFF). He also helped found Justice for All Productions, through which he releases his films.
In 2010 del Vecchio contacted the New Jersey Supreme Court's Advisory Committee on Extrajudicial Affairs requesting that they review whether or not his filmmaking career would conflict with his work as a municipal court judge in North Arlington. The committee advised del Vecchio that the promotion of his films could be viewed as improper. In order to avoid issue, del Vecchio resigned from his position. The advisory ruling focused on three of del Vecchio's films, O.B.A.M. Nude, Fake, and An Affirmative Act.
The following year del Vecchio wrote, produced, and starred in The Life Zone, a pro-life horror film that focuses on three pregnant women who were kidnapped while seeking abortions, only to learn that they were instead brought to Hell. Two of the women choose not to pursue an abortion and are able to escape, while the third does not and is forced to undergo a never ending loop of pregnancy and childbirth. The movie was the focus of criticism from outlets such as Ms. magazine, which also noted that it received attention from Stephen Colbert. Erin Harrington noted that although del Vecchio tried to frame the film as non-partisan, marketing material advertised the film's ending as anti-abortion. She further wrote that there is no mention of what happens to the third woman's children and that "for all the emphasis upon foetal subjectivity and the rights of the unborn, they are ultimately elided in the name of cosmic retribution."
In 2012 del Vecchio was nominated as the New Jersey Libertarian candidate for the United States Senate, which he lost to John Driscoll, Jr.. He chose to run again in 2016, but was again unsuccessful.